Statement by the Indonesian Delegation at the 13th Session of the HRC Annual Full-day Meeting on the Rights of the Child - Panel Discussion on Manifestations of Sexual Violence Against Boys and Girl

On behalf of my delegation, I would like to thank the panellists for their thought-provoking presentations today. Indeed our discussion is pertinent not only from the point of view of protecting our children from the scourge of sexual violence but also from that of securing our future as a whole.

My delegation aligns itself to the statement made by Pakistan on behalf of the OIC.

As in many other developing countries, cases of sexual violence against children in Indonesia are closely linked to poverty. Poverty severely limits development and renders children vulnerable to terrible forms of abuse and harm. Poverty also deprives children of any choices about their future and is often a root cause of illegal trafficking and involuntary migration.

With the aim of seeking a better life, children are sadly often forced to uproot their lives and migrate to unfamiliar environments and countries. Indeed, migration, both internal and trans-national, contributes to child prostitution, trafficking in persons, sex tourism, and domestic sexual violence.

At this point, my delegation would like to seek further elaboration from the panellists about some of the best practices used by other developing countries in tackling sexual violence against children in the context of migration? And how these practices relate to their poverty eradication measures?